A new pilot program under the military and army sector was done in 2020-2021. It was a west Papua and Papua non-commissioned program study and inauguration. The program consists of 1.000 natives, which are being part of the OTSUS or special autonomy innovation. As a new pilot program, it was a big success with 1.000 students ready to join the army.
Non-Commissioned Program With Special Autonomy
The pilot program with the help of OTSUS regulation was the first and an example. In this model education and carrier program, the students will be part of the Calon Bintara (Caba) or non-commissioned candidate for army carrier in TNI. However, the OTSUS OAP is different from the regular program.
The OTSUS program was a collaboration with TNI AD from Kodam XVIII/Kasuari with the province government. The goal of the program is to help increase the SDM or human resources of the native youth. Indigenous youth will have the chance to join the program, which sourced its cost and budget through OTSUS (special autonomy).
The program is accepted by the central government, which later infuses some investment and cost through the special autonomy of West Papua. Since then, the program started on November 4th, 2020, and ended on March 23th, 2021. The program will hold 20 weeks of education for the best students of the province.
Officially, the program is named as Bintara (Dikmaba) Otonomi Khusus Orang Asli Papua (OAP) kodam XVIII/Kasuari 2020. As a pilot program, it has an ambitious number of candidates with a total of 1.000 people. 960 male candidates are scattered across different divisions, while 40 females are located in Pusdik Kowad, Bandung.
New Foster Family Method
One thing that deserves applause is the new method of teaching. The military education by Otsus Papua uses the idea of a foster family. It was an innovation where every army student from a different province acts as a senior. One senior will help and guide two students from Papua. The seniors should be those with better education.
The foster parents and guide method are given for Papuan students. The guide and seniors will help West Papua students to understand the education, the law, rules, and every army-related information. It also includes helping the students when in need of help. During the education and process, both parties will have the chance to communicate and adapt to each other.
By doing so, both senior and Papuan students can share experiences or knowledge. It will eventually help create a better communication and education flow. Especially with the idea to broaden and introduce the indigenous Papuan students to other parts of Indonesia. It was a good education method that led the program to its success.
Inauguration
As in the current situation, the students have done five months of education and are appointed as Sersan Dua (Serda) or sergeant two. It was the inauguration to prove the completion of the first and the second education phase. The first phase was three months of basic army education in Papua.
The second education phase was the two months education in Kodam located in Java. West Papua students will later finish the last education for corps, which is located on the dedicated alliance. The last phase will take about five months, which was started around April 2021. After the last education, each student will be assigned to corps and branches.
Best students
Among the students and candidates, Serda Andry Kaoci with Tenaga Kerja Bongkar Muat (TKBM) or loading and unloading manpower was announced as the best students. The man that came from Waisai has proven that indigenous Papua can show their power and capability.
With the completion of the first five months of education, the Pangdam Diponegoro Mayjen Rudianto expresses gratitude for all of the students. Rudianto stated that the non-commissioned students should emphasize the basics of army and soldier. They should be responsive, carry out the eight mandates of TNI, and uphold the spirit of Sapta marga and Soldier’s Oath.
The succession of the Bintara (Dikmaba) Otonomi Khusus Orang Asli Papua (OAP) itself is not only proof of indigenous contribution to the country. Before the program, five Papuan males had been selected to be part of military academy cadets in Magelang. The five cadets have been through grueling tests and selections.
The west Papua cadets have gone through varying tests including physical, health, psychology, and ideology. They are part of ten highly achieved cadets, and eight of them are accepted to continue the academy. Those cadets are five Papuans and three non-Papua. The head military was proud of the achievement and can see a bright future for those cadets.
1.000 native are not a little. However, the program did marvel during 2020-2021 since it resulted in stellar soldiers with acknowledgment and achievement. As a pilot project, the inauguration through OTSUS should help prove that the Indonesian government and locals can work together to increase human resources.
